The Beautiful Game of Life
by LuanOTP
Summary: AU. That Sylveon - with a twist! Enter the city of West Latias, and watch your life unfold in a foreign world, amid new friends! Uploaded with permission from Luanastar. Rated M for mature themes.
1. Chapter 1

**Please spare my soul!**

Okay, so this was sent to me by Luanastar. First things first, I've been really busy sorting my life out at the moment. Don't worry, however. It's nothing too serious. Although, this means that I haven't necessarily been able to post much on Fanfiction as much as I would like, resulting in the unfortunate TU Discord server being totalled. But Luanastar on the other hand… Yeah, she's got all the time in the world. XD But, it was her sharp mind that led her to think of this little story. I do believe it's a one-shot, but that could change. She did not want it to be posted on her account, however. What you're seeing here is 100% her work, so please give credit where it's due.

Luanastar doesn't own Pokemon. Beta-read by DegenerateFluffington.

 _This was just a little idea that I came up with in the shower… Don't ask. XD_

* * *

Your eyes fluttered open, with your brain concluding that you were in a bed. The sun peered around the curtains, and lit up the room whose color you had decided yourself upon that day where you and your had family moved in. Speaking of family…

"(Name)!" came a booming voice from beyond your room. "Get your lazy butt up and ready for school! Imagine missing out on your first day! Your mother won't be happy at all."

Rolling your eyes (although you did fear the wrath of your angry mother), you stood up from your bed sheets, and followed the commands of your father. Showering didn't take long at all, nor did the general self-clean up procedure. Finally, after no more than ten minutes, you were ripe and ready to get going to school; the one out of the two situated in the West Latias Province, of course, were all the smartest and most athletic Pokemon combined to form an institution for breeding greatness. You weren't quite excited for school, but at least this was your final year before you headed off for college. Better make it count.

Stepping outside, the cool breeze of the suburban area rushed to your cheeks as if it were from a fan. The desolate roads and unpopulated streets made you huff a sigh of nostalgia. These streets weren't anything like the ones back home.

When you had begun your journey, you saw a red figure walk on the other side of the road. It looked like a Blaziken wearing a hoodie… Wait a second… You recognised that person from TV - the ever famous Brendan Bursyamo, one of the best battlers the world had to offer. You weren't too hyped up on battling and all, but when it came to celebrities, it's always okay to be well-rounded in terms of knowledge.

"Excuse me!" you shouted, chasing after their slightly brisk walk. Thankfully, they trekked on the exact same route that you had to use to get to school.

Your yelp caught their attention, as they turned around, your eyes lighting up as you got within talking range of the well-known Blaziken.

"Hello? How may I help you?" the Blaziken said, albeit with a very unfamiliar voice as opposed to the one you remembered on television. "Or, did you think I'm Brendan Bursyamo, and wanted an autograph?"

Shamefully, you nod your head. Although, the Blaziken did let out a chuckle.

"That's fine! We get confused all the time. That man you're looking for is actually my father. I'm his son, Barrágan Bursyamo, but you can call me Barry. Nice to meet you!"

The Blaziken stuck out a talon, to which you shook with glee. It was always great to meet someone as friendly as this fire-type: Him being related to someone famous was just a massive bonus, of course.

"Nice to meet you too, Barry. I'm (Name), but you can call me (Name)!" you semi-joked. You know, depending on what you decide to put inside those brackets.

"(Name)... That's quite a schmancy name! Is it foreign?" Barry questioned, putting his talons in the pockets in his hoodie. You could obviously tell that he was comfortable talking with you, just as you were comfortable talking with him.

You teetered your hand/paw from side to side, as if to say 'sort of'.

"Right, right." Barry said, before finally realising the direction in which the both of you walked in tandem. "If you don't mind me asking, (Name), where are you headed off to at this time in the morning?"

You had completely forgot that you were still on your way to school. "Oh. I'm going to school. What about yourself?"

"Me too. Are you going to Everlast High school? Because that's in this general direction." Barry questioned. You were glad to see his smile widen as you shook your head yes. "Wow, what a coincidence! I am too! This is your first day, right? Is it alright if I show you around?"

"Okay, yes please!" you replied, returning the same smile that the Blaziken gave you.

Seeing the fire-type skip for joy really plastered a big beam on your face. Something about his giddiness reminded you of yourself when you were a youngster.

Only five minutes' worth of walking more, and both of you found yourselves at the school building. Barry ushered you through the gates, where you could see the hundreds of Pokemon rush about the hallways with different intentions. One particular pink Pokemon ran over to the both of you. You recognised them to be a Sylveon.

"Hey Barry, I'm coming over to your place after sch- oh." stopped the Sylveon, as soon as their eyes met yours. "Hello. Is this your friend, Barry?"

Barry grinned and nodded. "Of course! I met them on the way to school. Turns out they're in our year too. This is (Name). (Name), this is my cousin, Anais."

You wore a bashful twinkle on your lips, and gave the fairy type a minor wave. Anais, on the other hand, threw up her eyes in surprise.

"That's not a name from around here is it? Oh well. I didn't know there were gonna be new students this late into the year. But hey, great to see you, (Name). I reckon we'll share some classes, too."

You nodded, now perceiving that Anais was a lot more calm and cool in contrast to her nice and jolly cousin.

Barry now intervened. "So (Name), I guess I could take you over to your form room. You'll probably know which one it is, since you would've received it beforehand."

You nodded once more. Wow, quite a lot of nodding today. "Yeah, I did. Room 237." you stated before noticing that Barry's smile intensified. You must've had the same form room as him! Lucky!

"Woah, that's a huge coincidence, (Name). That's our form room too." said Anais, turning around on her heel. "So, we may as well get going there right now."

Once you all had agreed to get a move on, you did exactly that, navigating through the very extensive and monotonous hallways to get to your destination. While you did that, though, you saw Barry slightly decrease his speed. Probably so he could stay back with you to speak out of earshot of Anais, who led the way.

"Hey, sorry about Anais, if she gets a little bit hot-headed sometimes." slightly whispered Barry into your ear. "She'd never mean it, though. Unless she got really mad… Don't let that trick you; she's a really nice person, honest!"

Although Barry's little warning muddled your opinion of the Sylveon a little, you dipped your head in acknowledgement, and kept the journey going.

Eventually, you came to the door along with Barry and Anais as escorts. The teacher, who was an Alakazam, beckoned for you to come over to them, while your acquaintances took seats on different sides of the classroom. As you walked to the Alakazam, you felt the gazes of the masses of students poke you in the side. Finding a safe place to sit in this room was going to be a little tricky.

"Good morning." spoke the Alakazam. "I do take it that you're the new student, (Name)." You nodded your head. Something told you that your neck was going to pain a lot today. "Alright. I'm Mr. Telepo, and I'll be your form teacher for the remainder of the school year."

"Okay sir." you meekly said, slightly bowing to show a bit of respect.

Mr. Telepo then stood up, and cleared his throat. "Please listen, everyone! Here, we have a new student enrolling today. (Name) here hopes to make a good impression, so please make them feel at home here at our school."

The classroom uniformly nodded their head.

"Good. Now, you may take a seat, (Name)."

Nervously, you looked around in hopes of a free seat where you could enjoy your adventures in singularity. Barry and Anais had grabbed their own seats, sure, but there were no unoccupied chairs anywhere near them. However, there was one next to a Lopunny, who incessantly tapped her digits on her phone. Sitting next to them didn't sound too bad, right?

You stepped over to the empty seat, and sat down in it. The Lopunny did look up from her phone, giving you a friendly smile.

"Oh, hiya. Sorry, I wasn't concentrating. Are you new?" asked the normal type, sounding and looking a lot more feminine as you maintained eye contact with them.

"Yeah, Mr. Telepo just introduced me right now. I'm (Name), nice to meet you." you told the 'Bunny, trying to sound as nice as possible.

"(Name)? Oooh, that sounds tropical! I like it! I'm Lola P. or just Lola. At least, that's what all my friends call me, so you can call me that too!." spoke Lola, spinning her phone within her paws. "Also, I saw you walking to school Barry earlier today."

You did catch her eyebrow raise a little as she said that. "Uh, yeah, we were. I met him on the way to school and we talked all the way. He's quite a nice person."

As you talked, you couldn't shrug off the very obvious stare that she gave you with extreme teasing flavours.

"Ooh, is that right (Name)? He's quite the _gentleman_ , isn't he? The kind who'd let you snuggle up in his arms, and slowly caress your face as he did so, no?" dreamily described Lola, winking a little more than what was considered enough to make you feel uncomfortable.

Although you couldn't necessarily keep the blush off your face, you still had to put up an argument of some sort. "No! It's not like that, Lola. I've only just met him today! There's no way you can assume that I like him, because I really don't. We're only just friends."

Lola smirked and leaned back in her chair, pulling out her phone. "Well, I suggest you act soon, (Name). Otherwise, I may just have to bag him for myself."

You let out a fake chuckle, before the bell rung. Something about what Lola said didn't make you feel too easy. You flicked a glance at your timetable, noticing that you had gym class first thing in the morning.

"Right. Lola, I have gym class right now, but I'm not too sure where the gymnasium is. Do you mind if you show me?" you politely asked. Lola cheerfully wagged her head like a very obedient pet and stood up with you.

"No worries, (Name). I've got gym class too. It's a really good way to socialize with the other moronic, and not-so moronic students in our year." crudely commented the Lopunny, leading you out of the classroom, and into the hallway. Before you exited the room, however, you did catch a glimpse of the pretty Anais, chatting away with a very handsome Ninetales. What an unforgettable face that fire type had.

"Hey, hey! (Name)? Are you on this earth? You sorta just zoned out there." spoke Lola, snapping you out of your trance.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Sorry." you excused. Lola shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly.

"No worries. Anyway, just straight through here, and you're at the gym. The left is the cafeteria, which is my fave place, by the way~" sang the Lopunny. You duly took note of this, as well as her very angelic voice. "You look like an athletic kind of person to me, (Name). Just look at that bod you have!"

You giggle anxiously, not too sure if you were exactly the fittest person in the world. "Aha, thank you, Lola. You have quite the figure yourself." you complimented, but that didn't go without a blush on your own face.

Lola pulled a seductive pose, making you pay a lot of attention to her hips especially. "You think so? I mean, I have been working out my legs as of late, too, so…"

You laugh, as Lola guides you through the doors of the gymnasium. As you would've imagined, the gym had a very large interior, with a wall of glass that let the morning light through. Bleachers were on the opposite side of the main entrance. There was a desk and chair tucked in the corner of the gym, but it was vacant.

"Hey, where's the teacher?" you asked Lola, who took you over to the bleachers to sit down.

Lola shrugged her shoulders without a care in the world. She crossed her legs and leaned backwards a little. "I'm not too sure. Generally, when the teacher isn't around, we just fool around and do whatever we want for the lesson. You know, like battling, basketball, whatever."

You smiled on the inside. "Then I'm glad, since I'm getting a free period on my first day! What do you usually do when something like this happens?"

"Well, (Name), it's about time I introduced you to the wonderful concept known as 'Gossip'." stated Lola, leaning forward and closer to you, so no one could hear her speak. "Days like these - which happen quite infrequently, mind you - I'd talk to my closest friends about the hottest gossip of the school. For starters, do you know who Anais Breon-Solian is?"

You wagged your head up and down, under the assumption that Lola spoke of the Sylveon who encountered earlier today.

"Mkay, and you definitely know who Nester Queueneufs is, right?"

"No, I don't think so." You muttered, a little curious. That sort of stumped you; neither Barry nor Anais ever talked about a Nester being around in this school. At least, one that was worth knowing about.

Suddenly, Lola's jaw fell as if her hinges were made of rubber. "WHAT?! Boy, are _you_ out of the loop if you don't know who Nester Queueneufs is! Surely, you saw him in our home-form room, right? He's the smokin' hawt Ninetales. Did you not see him?"

Then, and only then, did it snap in your head; the particularly visually-appealing Ninetales you spotted before during registration. "Oh, oh! Yeah, I've certainly seen him before. What about him?"

Lola gave you two flicks of her brow, alongside a grin to convey her innuendo. Your mouth formed an "O" when you pieced it together in your head.

"So they're a couple?" you asked, becoming more and more curious about the enigmatic Ninetales, and his association with Anais.

"So-so, (Name). Anais has the complete hots for him, but has been having some difficulty getting it out, you know?" explained the Lopunny, reaching being her long, floppy ears to give them a scratch.

"Oh, okay. Well, I hope things work out for her." you told Lola. She smiled and agreed with you.

"For sure. One second, (Name). I'm gonna visit the little girls' room." snidely told Lola, who hopped off the bleachers. "Oh, but before I go, can I ask a quick question, (Name)?"

"Sure."

"Have you ever been a relationship before?"

The critical question asked so casually caught you off guard, making your face flash red like a traffic light. "W-What? W-Why do you ask?"

Lola winked playfully at you, but that didn't help much to rid your blush. "Oh, no reason!" she finally sung, before sashaying across the gym.

Once your normal-type companion left the room, you got a better look at the inhabitants of your surroundings, looking for any familiar faces, whilst hoping that your red-painted face would disappear quicker. There was Anais, the majorly-pink Sylveon that you had yet to talk to a little more. However, she was with the Ninetales that Lola had spoken to you about. Not to be blunt or anything, but you did think that he was quite the handsome hunk.

 _ **You're telling me.**_

You looked around worriedly, wondering who _on Earth_ could've said that, but it didn't seem like there was anyone near you. Eventually, you shrugged it off, and rested your head in your paws. Before you could think of the remainder of waiting for Lola's return to be eventless, you spotted Barry in the corner of the gymnasium, performing complex exercises.

Happily, you skipped over to him to engage in conversation. The Blaziken seemed to be your closest friend in the school so far, with Lola as a close second. Of course, that was subject to change at any time.

"Hi Barry!" you yipped, catching the Blaziken in the middle of a push-up.

"Oh! Hello, (Name)! How are you finding gym class so far?" Barry quizzed, getting up from his previous position. "I mean, I know it's been a little boring, but have you been occupying yourself well?"

You cocked your head a little bit. Now that you saw Barry being so productive, you felt quite ill-equipped to answer his question. "Uh, yeah, I was talking with Lola, the Lopunny, just now before she left for the bathroom."

Barry nodded, understanding completely. "Fair enough. Oh, by the way, (Name), there's a buddy of mine that I'd love for you to meet. His name is Raidon, and he's really nice. He's the Luxray that's coming toward us right now, actually."

You turned around, and you did indeed saw a Luxray walk toward you with a smile on their face.

"Hey, Barry." greeted Raidon, before his gaze eventually fell upon your own. "And you are (Name), right? That's a name I don't think I've heard around here."

You giggled, as soon as you saw Barry's eyes light up.

"Oh, yeah! (Name) said it was foreign, right?" the Blaziken (quite literally) chirped. "I think it's really nice."

"Yeah, it sounds quite exotic, (Name). I saw you during registration. How are you enjoying your stay so far?" Raidon said, taking a seat on his bottom as he spoke. His gleaming eyes were certainly… _eye catching._

"Oh, it's been great, thank you. So far, everyone's seemed to have been very kind to me." you admitted, beaming at the Luxray. He reflected your smile, and for a while, the two of you initiated your own little impromptu staring contest. It was just so hard to look away from his bright, brilliant-blue and yellow eyes amid his jet black fur.

However, the silence was shattered when a high pitched sneeze came from Barry's end, startling you heavily.

"Sorry, sorry! One of my feathers snuck up my nose." shamefully confessed Barry, before he looked at you, an idea giving him a grand grin. "Oh, guys! How about we all have lunch afterwards? The food is really nice, (Name), so I reckon you'd be in for a treat!"

"Yeah, that sounds like a really good plan, Barry. I didn't grab breakfast today, so I suppose I'm a little peckish." you divulged, nervously itching your neck.

"Same! I could eat a Rapidash!" joked Raidon, laughing along with you. "But, I'll have to complete my exercise regiment first."

A pattern was triggered in your head about the duo of Raidon and Barry as soon as that was said. "Hey, are you two like, really hyped up on keeping fit? You both seem like you'd be extremely athletic."

Both Barry and Raidon nodded, but only Raidon responded.

"Yeah, we're both on the school's battling team, so we need to ensure that we're always in tip-top shape, you know?" elaborated the Luxray, with Barry concurring in tow. "Plus, you'd always want to keep in shape, right?"

No wonder. To your eyes, their bodies were, without a doubt, toned and shaped to that of a battler. Although Barry didn't look too beefy, and Raidon looked like he could do with some work around his arms, you could see just where all those hours of exercise went to.

"Wow, I couldn't imagine working that hard to battle. You guys must be pretty good." you complimented. Although, Barry and Raidon looked at each other and chuckled, before they looked back at you.

"Sure, I guess you could say that!" humorously told Raidon. "But what about you, (Name)? Do you do any battling at all?"

You weren't too sure what to say to answer that question. You've certainly had your experience, but nowhere as near as these guys in front of you. "I uh, yeah. I guess I've done a bit of battling myself. But, I'm probably not as good as you guys, that's for sure."

"Well, there's only one way to find out, ri-"

 ***BRRRIIIIINNNGGG***

Thankfully, Raidon's challenge (that would've otherwise, left you cold-footed) was cut off by the intervention of the school bell, signalling for a break.

"Oh well. At least we can go and grab some grub, eh?" said Raidon, excitedly.

"Sure!"

Raidon gestured for you to follow him, while Barry stretched out, before joining the fray also. When you left through the gym doors, you saw Lola, brushing the back of her ears as she walked towards your group.

"Hiya, guys! What are y'all doing?" asked Lola, putting her brush behind her back, to which it spontaneously disappeared. You had to blink twice to believe that one.

Barry replied, although a little dumbfounded. "What do you mean? Gym class finished just now. Where were you?"

Lola made quick eye contact with you, as you were fully aware of where she went during the period. However, it's not like it was your place to say anything to her about it.

"I, uhm. No no, I knew that gym finished. I just went to grab my break food early, y'know?" told Lola, grinning profusely as if to mimic the monsters from the manga you had read last week, _Attack on Tirtouga._

"Oh, right." said Raidon, excusing the Lopunny's truancy. "That's a shame, because we were heading to the cafeteria right now, actually."

Lola looked at you once more. Then, she looked at Barry, before returning the focus back to Raidon.

"Well, going for seconds wouldn't hurt, right guys?"

Heartily, you all laughed as a unit. Lola was then accepted into the party of three, now making it four, as you trekked to the cafeteria. The four of you took a right somewhere, and then found yourselves in the school's canteen. Your senses were in for a ride on the wild side as soon as you smelled the waft of the food being cooked within the area - absolute ecstacy, to say the least.

"Wow!" you exclaimed out of habit. "The food here smells amazing! I can't wait to try!"

Raidon's eyebrow raised, while he smirked smugly. "You'd deffo be surprised, (Name). After the first week or so, you'll find that the food doesn't taste any better than… I don't know, cereal?"

You didn't let Raidon's comments get your ambition's down, however, as you dashed to be first in line. Lola and Raidon came along also, but Barry hung back to secure a table for the four of you. You took notice of this with your sharp vision, and felt a little bit dejected due to the general sight of the Blaziken being on his lonesome.

"Hey, how comes Barry isn't coming to eat too?" you questioned the duo of Raidon and Lola. "He's going to be missing out, right?"

Lola looked back, seeing that you were right for sure. "Oh. Well, from what Anais told me, he's not really too hot on eating, I suppose. Ooh, also! Did you know that Barry and Anais were cousins? Crazy, right?"

"Yeah, I knew that already. But, maybe I could get something for Barry, you know? We can't all eat without him eating too." you murmured, plucking two sets of burgers and fries for yourself and your companion.

"True, I guess."

Once you had all finished picking out the foodstuffs that were soon to be munched between your jaws, you returned to Barry, who was there twiddling his digits together. The cute image of the Blaziken just made you feel so much sympathy for him.

"Hey, Barry." you begun, taking a seat next to the Blaziken. "I saw that you didn't get anything to eat, so I figured that I may as well get you something while I was there."

Barry's eyes illuminated, and a great smile evolved from his emotionless frown. "Really? Thank you so much, (Name)!"

You smiled and pushed your plate of food towards him, so you could both eat from the same plate. You had never seen the Blaziken so elated before, let alone from your own generosity. This was a side of him, you'd like to see every day.

"It's no problem, Barry." you assured him, putting a few fries into your mouth. However, it only took 10 minutes to see where Lola was coming from earlier; Barry had barely finished his fries, while the rest of you were just about to finish your meals.

From the left, you saw Anais come from the main doors, a slightly sullen look on her face. She sat across from you and Barry, and in between Lola and Raidon.

"Hi, guys." mumbled Anais, throwing her head into her paws, as she spotted Barry's unharmed burger on your shared plate. "Are you gonna finish that burger, Barry?"

Barry put his talons up. "I don't think I will, but that's not technically mine; it's (Name)'s, but she got it for me."

"Oh, right. Sorry 'bout that, (Name). I usually impose myself on his food." explained Anais, accompanied with nods of concurrence from your other peers.

"That's okay. I guess if Barry won't have it, then sure." you said. However, by the time that all came out, Anais had already taken the burger, dissolved it in her insides, and was now playing with the wrapper between her paws. "Uhhh…"

Anais shrugged her shoulders. "What can I say? I'm a fast eater."

The table roared with laughter, minus yourself, of course, due to the confused look on your face. You could nervously scratch your head and laugh a little too.

You were just glad to find some friends.

* * *

I'm ending it here, for the sake of wanting to upload it ASAP. I knew it was going to be rushed, however, so I called up the help of my main man, Degenerate Fluffington, to beta read this for me. Credz! Credz credz credz! Now, I may have gotten a _tiny_ bit of inspiration from _Doki Doki Literature Club_ , but similar to the game, the decisions of (Name) (AKA, you, the reader!) will likewise affect how the story unfolds.

Well, that's all I have for you! Thanks for reading! If you ever want to tell me your opinion, do tell! In the form of a review, of course! Thanksies!

-Luanastar


	2. Chapter 2

All you had to do was follow the dang story, CJ!

Hiya! Right now, it's Luanastar. I'm glad to see how last chapter turned out. The reviews from y'all really warmed my heart. Regardless, do remember that this is an AU story, just so you don't get mixed up. Also, big, big shoutouts to my guy DegenerateFluffington, for beta-reading. He's a huge help. Credz!

Luanastar does not have anything to do with Pokemon, or any other copyrighted franchises mentioned in this story.

* * *

The rest of your classes were quite normal. You got to socialise with your mini-group of friends a bit more in the meantime, until the school day was over. It was at that time, you were walking outside the school gates alongside Anais, the Sylveon. She was going on about one of her misadventures involving her cousin, Barry.

"Sooo, I let go of the shopping cart, and he crashed into a huge tower of shopping glasses!" laughed the Sylveon, nearly toppling over in her walk cycle. You chuckled quite a bit too. The antics that went on between those two were as if they had their own sitcom.

"That's really funny of you to do, Anais. But, he wasn't hurt, was he?" you cautiously questioned.

"No, he was fine." said Anais, waving you off. The both of you soon found yourselves outside the school building, now. Anais put up her paw to her chin, rubbing it softly. "So uh, which way do you walk?"

You pointed down a pathway on the side of the main road. "Just down Jericho street. My house is then on the left."

"That's sorta lit, since that's the way down to Barry's yard, which is where I'm going today." explained Anais, making you smile on the inside. You were growing quite fond to Anais' outgoing and fashionable personality. "Maybe, we could wait up for him, before all walking down together?"

You weren't too sure how your parents would react if you were late on your first day of school. However, Barry seemed like he wouldn't take too long anyway, so you nodded and proceeded with Anais' plan.

"Awesome. Oh, and one thing, (Name) - you have a cellphone, right?" asked Anais, taking out her own phone from Arceus-knows-where, and waving it about in her paw.

"Yeah, I do."

Anais smiled toothily. "That's major. Do you wanna exchange numbers? You seem like a really decent person, so I thought we may as well; we can get to know each other some more, you know?"

You felt increasingly warm in your insides as Anais told you that. "Sure, that sounds really great."

"Okay, my number is 497-619-7707. Did you get all of that?" said Anais, recounting the whole thing off the top of her head. That really stunned you. How many people in this school has she exchanged numbers with?

"Uhm… No..?" you muttered, red with embarrassment.

Anais laughed aloud. "Don't worry, no one gets it on the first time. Anyway, my number is 497-619-7707. Did you get it that time?"

Thankfully, you were able to enter the said combination of those numbers with lightning speed. "Yeah, I did. Thank you."

"No worries." Anais said, smiling. She wasn't like this all day, was she? "Oh, oh! You'd probably want Barry's number too, right? He doesn't use his phone that often, though, but it's worth knowing."

You nodded your head again, getting your cellphone out to get typing.

"Barry's number is 257-003-1997, but the chances of him giving you a text is little to none; the poor boy doesn't do much aside from training and goofing off." cheekily spoke Anais, inducing you to giggle some more.

"Right! Thanks again, Anais." you gratified, now putting your phone away… in wherever you keep it, you know?

"No worries."

Both you and Anais took to leaning on the school walls as you waited for Barry to make his presence known. What the Blaziken could be doing after school hours was beyond you, that was for sure. Soon enough, however, Barry was finally seen walking out of the main building, with a regular grin on his beak.

"Hiya, guys!" Barry yipped, waving to you especially. "Sorry I was late, Anais. My class was only let out just now, an-"

Anais rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let's get going already. You comin', (Name)?"

"Sure!"

You walked in between Barry and Anais, who both strolled/pranced in an orthodox fashion.

"Oh, right!" exclaimed the Blaziken, looking into your eyes. "You do come down this way, right? No wonder we met before school. Although, I don't think I've seen you around in general. Not to be rude - I don't want to impose - but did you move here recently?"

You weren't exactly sure how Barry was able to piece all of that together, but you answered his question regardless. "Oh, yeah, I did. My family and I used to live in (insert city here), (insert Region here), but we moved here since housing was cheaper."

"Wow, that place sounds exquisite." mumbled Barry, looking up towards the sky. "I love Hoenn and all, but I wouldn't mind leaving the region for a holiday. But, it would be a lot better with someone to go with."

Your face slightly flushed, since you doubted he was talking about Anais. On holiday with nothing but you and Barry? That sounded like a big feat… As friends, of course. Right?

"Haha, don't tell me you're talking about Lola!" guffawed Anais, her simple stride turning into a teasing trot.

You looked over to Barry, who had an uneasy emotion on his face. "Uhm, I mean, if she'd accept, of course. We are friends after all, right?"

Anais could only look and laugh at the Blaziken making a fool out of himself. You smiled a little too, but had a little bit of sympathy for Barry.

Soon, you, Barry and Anais had reached your house within a few more minutes of walking. They smiled at your cozy and standard accommodation.

"Wow, that's a very nice house to be in." said Barry, in a minor stupor.

"Thank you." you replied, walking up the steps to the door. "Thanks for showing me around the school, too. I'll see you guys tomorrow!"

You waved Barry and Anais goodbye, as the two of them trekked further down the street. You opened your front door, and stepped in, breathing a sigh of relief for getting through your first day of school with little to no problems whatsoever.

Your mother was in the lounge. She was reading a newspaper, while drinking out of a coffee mug. Meanwhile, your father was in the kitchen, furiously scrubbing the dishes and preparing food.

"Hello, I'm home!" you yelled, entering the lounge. Your father briefly turned and waved, while your mother barely looked away from her newspaper.

"How was school, (Name)?" your mother questioned, sipping from her mug. "Nevermind, by the look on your face, that you just wiped off right now, I could tell that it was more than just a delight."

Your mouth went slightly agape, but you speedily closed when you found your mother smirking. Before you could speak, your mother interrupted you.

"Oh, also. Who was that Blaziken you were with this morning? The one that looked just like Brendan Bursyamo? There's no way you've gotten yourself a partner already, is there?" interrogated your mother, squinting at you closely. "Nevermind. Judging by that flush of yours, he probably isn't your boyfriend, but rather just an indecisive crush. Am I wrong?"

"Uhhh…" you started, the pressure mounting as soon as your father entered the room. "UHH, I have to use the washroom!"

You immediately darted out of the room, and up the staircase to your room. Enough of that for now. Your closed the door shut, and took a relieved glance around your room: The room's interior had the theme of a generic plain white. Your bed was arranged perfectly, with various dolls placed around it. On one of your walls, there was a poster with a flexing Blaziken battler celebrity, with the words "Learn to walk before you take to the streets!" captioned across the fire type's chest.

It was quite a lovely room, you had. You flopped on the bed, spreading yourself out on the sheets as you did so. A vibration sound came from your desk; it was your cellphone, screaming it's head off. Sluggishly, you stepped from the bed, to the desk, and grabbed your phone. It was a text message from Anais.

 _Anais: Yo, (Name)! I jst wanted 2 kno if you wanted in on a lil group outing tomoz w/me, Lolz and the 'Yamo. We finna nab a speedy ice creamy and then sum holly if ur about it. R U? XD jks. Jst headin out 4 some ice cream. Raidon culd com too but i gotta txt him first. Den, we gonz kick it at Lolz' yard 4 un poco. U in? R ur parents gd w/it? Rply asap. Ty. -Ann_

For a long while, you stared at the message that the Sylveon sent you. To be honest, you weren't even sure if that was a language you understood. You sat there in confusion until you heard a voice in your head.

 _ **How about I translate this for you?** **Anais said:** "Salutations, (Name)! I just wanted to inquire about your availability in attending a group event with the following companions: I, Anais Breon-Solian, Lola Punnichi and Barrágan Bursyamo. We intend to treat ourselves to a few pints of frozen yoghurt, and possibly some alcoholic beverages if you're feeling daring! Well? Are you? Hahaha! I jester. We are solely heading out for the frozen yoghurt. Our secondary acquaintance, Raidon Atos, may join our party also, but I have yet to notify him about our scheme. After we eat, we will take rest at Lola Punnichi's residence for a brief time. Do you agree with our plan? Are your parents fine with this notion? Please respond as soon as the opportunity arises. Many thanks. Yours faithfully, Anais Breon-Solian. **Does that help?**_

Firstly, you were stunned that Anais' message actually translated to give that. Secondly, you were stunned that your conscience took the Sylveon's incoherent speech, and turned it into something legible. Nonetheless, you typed in your response.

 _(Name): Sure, I can make it. Thanks!_

You sent the message, and put your phone away for now. Maybe, it would be worse staying up to wait for a reply; your mind seemed to be playing tricks on you today. You folded yourself inside the blankets, and closed your eyes. Snoozing away, sounded like a really viable option here…

* * *

"(Name)! (Name)! What in Johto are you doing?" screamed your mother, waking you up immediately and throwing the blankets off you, just for good measure. "You're going to be late for school!"

You peered at your alarm clock, reading 7:00 in the morning. "Uhh, Mom? School doesn't start until half past 8?"

"How about you take a look at your clock again?"

Once you had blinked, you turn around to glance at your alarm clock. There would've been bricks in that bed of yours, as the clock suddenly read 8:25, flat. You were tempted to swear, if only your mother wasn't in the room too, grinning mischievously while she watched you scuttle to the bathroom. You could've sworn that you heard her laugh afterwards.

Scrub scrub scrub, and you were finally done. You barely had time to dry yourself, as you hopped out the main door of the house, shifting gear as you turned to rush down the street. However, as you made another turn, you collided into something very tough and hard.

"Ow!" the something wailed. You did recognise that voice, however. You looked up and saw Barry, flat on his backside.

"Oh, Barry! I'm so sorry, I didn't see you at all!" you cried, rushing to the Blaziken's side to help him up.

Barry rubbed his beak, as he accepted your aid. "Thank you. I just didn't expect that to come out of literally nowhere. You really packed a punch back there, (Name)!"

Although Barry laughed, you found it a bit tricky to keep up with his humor since the fear of being late still shook you on the inside. "Haha, yeah. But Barry, aren't we going to be late? I don't want to be late on my first week of attending school!"

You noticed a bit of sweat crawl from Barry's temple downwards. "How? It's only seven thirty? The clocks went backwards yesterday."

Pressure filled the inside of your mouth, urging you to release rage in the form of noise. A very loud noise. "What? Really?" Sadly, Barry did nod his head. "Well… what were you doing so early in the morning anyways?"

Barry smiled, happy to answer your question, supposedly. "I was heading to the gym early so I could have an early spar with Raidon before lessons started."

Your eyebrows raised a little bit in suspense. You knew that both Raidon and Barry were accomplished martial artists, but you still had yet to see them in action. Perhaps, this could be your lucky day.

"Wow, really? I'd love to come and watch!" you yipped, but you didn't actually mean to sound so excited. Thankfully, it didn't make Barry feel uncomfortable or anything, as you saw on his face. Instead, a grin came upon his beak.

"Oh, of course you could come and watch us spar! Having company will make this even better!" told Barry, looking quite ecstatic to have you on board.

Now that you were hooked on the idea, you and Barry got on your way to the school grounds. It seemed like it took less time to make it to school now that you were in a rush. Funny, right? Regardless, when you and Barry got to school, you both went straight to the gymnasium.

Raidon was already there on the main mat in the centre of the large room. The Luxray's glittering irises took notice of your own, while the very realisation of your presence put a smile on his face.

"Oh, (Name)! Hello and good morning! I didn't know that you were coming! Are you going to watch us spar?" asked Raidon, suddenly jumping up from his seat on the mat.

"Morning to you too, Raidon. Oh, and definitely!" you chirped, taking a seat on the nearest bench to the action.

Barry stepped onto the mat. You could tell that he wasn't so impressed with the fact that Raidon didn't greet him also. "Good morning, Raidon."

"Morning, Barry."

Barry took off his hoodie to reveal a vest of the same colour and brand underneath. However, in the process, you did catch a glimpse of his toned abdominals. Quite impressive, you thought… Amid other things, that obviously weren't important.

Both Barry and Raidon bowed down in front of each other, before they both looked at you expectantly.

At first, you thought that there was something on your face. However, it all came together when you realised, you were technically the only person available to officiate the match.

"Oh! Uh… On your marks, get-set, go?"

The contestants roared in laughter, before eventually commencing the battle. Attacks were happening within the blink of an eye, making it slightly tricky for you to catch up with them. You did see Raidon lunge with the intent to tackle the Blaziken, but Barry had responded with a deadly spinning elbow to the Luxray's gut, launching the electric type backwards.

You weren't sure who to root for, so you decided on keeping that trap of yours closed for now. So far, Barry had landed more successful hits on Raidon, but that didn't mean the Luxray showed any sign of faltering. You admired that greatly from the electric type.

Barry breathed in, and sent a streak of flames Raidon's way. Raidon easily dodged, though, and retaliated with a discharge of current all around him. You could say, Barry was quite _shocked_ from the result. The Blaziken yelped as his insides were made a bit too hot for his liking. Nothing that he couldn't handle, however, as he stood firmly on the ground and reiterated his fiery tactic.

This time, Raidon had jumped up to dodge the attack. However, as you could tell by the look of eagerness on Barry's face, this wasn't about to end in the Luxray's favour. Barry slipped over to Raidon's shadow, waiting for the force of gravity to do it's work. Eventually, when Raidon was in range, Barry flipped himself onto his talons and used his arms are springs to send his legs skywards. Destination? Raidon's poor, pretty face.

You winced at the sound of Barry's feet-talon thingies slamming into the Luxray's unsuspecting nose with forces that could give a hydraulic press a run for its money. To say the least, you could only sit and watch while Raidon's ragdoll-like body spun out of the mat and onto the floor surrounding it.

"Dang…" Raidon croaked, holding his nose tightly. "You've bested me again, Barry. How do you do it?"

Barry smiled gratefully, but shrugged his shoulders. "To be fair, I do spend a lot of time practicing. However, that was an amazing battle, Raidon. Thank you. I was certainly worried on the mat, I'll admit." The Blaziken then turned to face you, after complimenting Raidon. "Oh, and thank you, (Name), for spectating the match."

"Yeah, thanks, (Name). I so thought I had Barry there, but you know." Raidon lifted his shoulders. At least, you were fond of the good sportsmanship between the two cohorts, as well as their technical abilities.

"It was an honour to be here, honestly! You guys are such good battlers, there's no way you won't make it to the professional leagues someday!" you joyously cried, from the bottom of your gut. "Is it alright if I watch you guys often? I could learn something from you two!"

Barry grinned, while Raidon beamed.

"Of course!"

"Sure, no problem!"

You cheerily mirrored their smiles, as a motive was made amid friends. To be honest, you had no problem saying that these two were your best friends. They probably felt the same way… right?

The two of them continued sparring for a bit longer, keeping you entertained before it was time to get going to classes. You followed Barry and Raidon to registration, but this time, took a seat next to Barry, who sat next to Raidon. Hopefully, Lola won't mind too much. It wasn't like she had appeared yet, anyway.

You watched Barry and Raidon chatter for a while, before a cream-furred Ninetales walked over to Barry's desk, taking turns in gazing at you and Raidon, with a weird look on his face. You recalled from yesterday's conversation with Lola, that this Ninetales was Nester Queueneufs.

"Hey, Bursyamo?" spoke up Nester, cocking his head. "Do you know these herbs? Because at least one of them is sitting in my seat."

This worried you greatly, as well as Raidon by the look on his face. You didn't want to be in the bad books of anyone on your first week. Thankfully, Barry had replied calmly.

"Yes, I do know them very well. I'm sorry, Nester, but you may have to find a new seat." said Barry, but the Ninetales didn't look too impressed. "Or if you want, you could have my seat."

Nester opened his mouth to retort, but then he stopped to steal a good look at you, before he smirked. "You know what Bursyamo? Keep your seat; I'll find another." With that, Nester departed the scene, not without sending you a very, very discrete wink, however, sending you into a wild flurry of emotions: What did that mean? Why would he do that? What is he going to do next? WHO IS HE?

 _ **I don't know, but you're a very loud thinker.**_

 _What in the heck? Am I going crazy?_

 _ **Well, once you get to know me, You'll probably find yourself going crazy. Don't worry, though, that's natural.**_

 _What in the Distortion World? Who are you?_

 _ **Shoutouts to my homeboys in the DW. Oh, uh… just imagine me as your conscience. I'm here to like, guide you, dude.**_

 _Oh, right… I just want to know what this Nester person's deal is._

 _ **Not too sure, but dang, he's a hunk, right?**_

 _Well, y-yeah, but that's not the poi-_

 _ **Then the case is closed.**_

You saw Barry peer over to your side a little bit. "Sorry about Nester." he mumbled, twiddling his talons. "He can be a bit of a… What's the word?"

"Jerk?" added Raidon?

You giggled a little, as Barry shrugged. "A little less than that! He can just be bit pompous sometimes."

"Do you guys like him?" you asked, and their responses did surprise you. Barry scratched his head, while Raidon shook his head to give you a flat-out no. "Well, why do you hang around him?"

"I don't." sternly declared Raidon, sticking his (slightly bruised) nose in the air. "Barry's the one responsible for that."

You didn't know Raidon could a minor snitch. He had an adorable childish attitude. Regardless, you turned to Barry for an answer, who looked like he was beginning to sweat very nervous pellets of salty water. Quite ironic for his typing.

"Uh, well... I just don't really have a problem with him; we both enjoy battling, too, as well as other things." explained Barry. For now, you simply nodded your head and quit interrogating him. Barry seemed like one of those people who were too kind to have an issue with anyone, honestly.

"Fair enough." you stated, smiling on the inside.

"Hey, Raidon!" you heard from your left. It was Anais Breon-Solian. "Oh, hi (Name)."

You waved at the Sylveon, but was concerned with Barry not being greeted in the same manner.

"Oy, Barrágan! Are you broken? Why didn't you wake me up today, you gormless plonker?!" scolded Anais, leaning on the Blaziken's desk menacingly. Barry looked to Anais with nervous eyes, and it seemed his feathers had went from red to a pale white within literal nanoseconds.

"O-Oh! I'm sorry, Anais!" sputtered Barry, not quite understanding the insults that Anais threw at him. "I didn't mean to, I swear!"

You would've forgiven the pleading Blaziken at the get-go. However, you could see that Anais was not about to let him off so easily.

"Well next time, you'd know to at least set an alarm for me!" Anais then looked at Raidon, who looked shaken out of his mind. "Oh, and Raidon! I just wanted to know if you were interested in coming with us after school for ice cream! We were also gonna stay at Lola's place for a bit, too."

Raidon's emotion of pure confusion definitely mirrored your own. However, the Luxray nodded for the sake of argument, so that was +1 a member that you'll be seeing after school today. What an event this was to be later on.

"And, just to confirm, (Name), you're on board with the program after school, yah?" reminded Anais, flicking Barry's beak with her paw once you signalled a 'yes' response. "Awesome. And Barry, make sure that you wake me up next time, should I be late again."

"Today was just a mistake. Sorry." assured Barry, but Anais only seemed to squint at the Blaziken threateningly.

"Today? And what was so important about today that you needed to wake up early and get to school? Was it so you could frolic around with someone before school hours?" Anais interrogated. You did catch Anais give you a quick glance while she said that. Your cheeks grew a rosy red; she wasn't pertaining to you as that said "someone", was she?

Barry shook his head, although Anais' hypothesis wasn't exactly false. "No, no! It was nothing like that! I had met up with Raidon and (Name) to do some sparring for our next tournament."

Anais peered at you, then Raidon, before eyeing up the Blaziken warily. "I believe you for now, Barrágan, but don't fool around with my attendance like that."

You saw that Barry would wince whenever he was called by his actual name, rather than his nickname. With a tone like Anais's, you wouldn't be surprised at all.

Anyway, Anais left the array of desks. Although it was quite a hostile atmosphere, you did sort of adore the brother-sister relationship that was shared between Barry and Anais. It was adorable, just as it was scary.

The bell rung, and your class was off to their next lesson (which was always gym, first thing in the morning). You stuck around Barry and Raidon once again, not forgetting the subtle wink that Nester had given you only a few minutes prior. They walked and talked about battling and other miscellaneous related factors surrounding battling on the way to the gymnasium. Now, you were starting to get your head around the layout of the school.

*CREEEEEAAK*, went the gym doors as the trio of yourself, Raidon and Barry - as well as other students - walked through it. This time, there was a teacher. It was a Weavile, who you thought was quite familiar. The Weavile stood tall in front of the bleachers, gesticulating for students to expeditiously scoot in and take a seat.

Once you and everybody else was sat on the bleachers, the Weavile finally started the lesson.

"Okay, students, listen up. Glad to see you're all back. Hopefully, your form hasn't dropped over the weekend. Also, apologies for not being present yesterday; my dear friend Br-" immediately, like at light speed, the Weavile's eyes snapped over to you. "Oh. I do see that we have a new student. Would you like to make your way over to my desk? Everyone else, commence with some circuit training."

The many students isolated you on the benches, leaving you under the stern gaze of your gym coach. You stepped off the bleachers as well, following the Weavile to a corner in the gym that had their desk. The dark type swivelled around the table to take a seat. Meanwhile, you stood patiently on the other side, waiting for something to happen.

"Okay, from what I understand, you must be (Name), yes?" questioned the Weavile, to which you nodded. "Right. I'll be your gym coach for the rest of the year. You may call me Ms. Easel, or just coach."

 _Easel? Where have I heard that before?_

 ** _Hmm. Maybe you've been reading the prequel as of late._**

 _Prequel?_

 ** _Uh, nevermind. Maybe you're imagining things. Wooo, spooky!_**

"Right, yes." you replied, going for a salute, but changing your mind halfway in, so it just sorta seemed like you had a minor spasm.

Thankfully, Ms. Easel wasn't looking at you at that particular moment. She pulled out a sheet of paper from underneath the desk, reading it promptly while glancing up at you from time to time. Occasionally, she'd throw up her eyebrows. Was there something surprising about what she was reading? If that was your biography, hopefully it wouldn't be too embarrassing.

Ms. Easel cleared her oesophagus, putting the paper back where it came from, and crossed her arms. "Okay (Name), would you say you have experience and/or the will to pursue battling in this school to a semi-professional level?"

You thought about that question carefully. On one hand, having experience of battling at a semi-professional standard would certainly stand out on a resumé. Also, if you could go pro, you'd definitely make it far. Yet, battling certainly put a lot of strain on the body, and if there was one thing you didn't mess up, it was the only body you had.

"Hey, are you going to answer the question?" Ms. Easel deadpanned, slumping back in her chair. "Today would be nice."

"Uhh, yes!" you said a little bit hastily, feeling a painful pang on your insides. "Battling is quite an, uh, exhilarating pastime for me."

Ms. Easel nodded, writing something down on a sheet of paper. "Well, your training examination thus begins now. BURSYAMO! OVER HERE!" she yelled, blowing you away as well as attracting the attention of your friendly neighbourhood Blaziken.

"Yes ma'am?" nervously responded Barry.

"(Name) here says they're fond of battling, so take 'em for a brief one, and come back to me, okay?"

Barry smiled at the order as he looked at you. "I understand, ma'am. Let's head outside, (Name)."

You were shaking on the inside, as your "skills" were soon to be put to the test. You could only hope to the divine beings above that you wouldn't have to fight Barry. Please, anyone but Barry.

* * *

Giratina sat on their beanbag peacefully, lounging within their private quarters and drinking from a cup of an unknown solution. For the first time in a eon, the dragon didn't seem to be stirring up any trouble at all. Slowly, from the doorway, Arceus emerged with a confused demeanor on their face.

"Giratina… did you hear something?"

Exasperatedly, Giratina shook their head. "Dude, that rare candy stuff is doing things to your head." they stated, slowly placing their cup around to a view were Arceus couldn't see it. "I suggest that you take the rest of the day off. I'll cover for you."

Arceus sort of smiled. "Thank you, Giratina."

"No worries, dude. I'll get to work right now, actually." assured the dragon, leaving Arceus to exit the room with a joyous attitude. Immediately, Giratina brought a laptop out from seemingly nowhere, typing up 'Furfroutube' in the search bar with their… bodily things.

"Alright. Now, what is a 'Burger-Kingler foot Latias'?"

* * *

Okay, chapter 2 is done. Credz to Degenerate Fluffington for reviewing this one also. Credz! Credz! Furthermore, thanks to all those who reviewed the last chapter. You'd have no idea how much motivation they give you. Anyways, I'll catch you all next chapter!

-Luanastar


	3. Chapter 3

" **Dance like a Beautifly, sting like a Beedrill."**

The story continues. Just so you guys know, (Name) is whoever you want them to be. Imagine them as any character of your choice, and insert them whenever you see "(Name)". Their genders, sexuality and pretty much every other features are whatever your imagination decides.

Luanastar does not own Pokemon.

* * *

You follow Barry outside, coming onto a grassy expanse that seemed to stretch out for eternity. There were white markings along the grass to depict a 400 metre track. Barry took you over to the very centre of the track, where there was a lone mat, decorated with brown, orange and green leaves. Your heart began to beat faster, as Barry beckoned for you to step on the mat across from him. Shakily, you went and stood across from him. Despite his small height for a Blaziken and extremely friendly persona, Barry looked as threatening as a prison inmate.

"Okay, (Name)! You're going to take part in a minor exercise to test your composure and general ability in a battle." explained Barry. You noticed that he still had a hoodie on, yet you recalled that the Blaziken took off his hoodie when battling the Luxray. Hopefully, he wasn't implying anything about your battling capability. "I think you did miss the last tryouts for the rest of the year, but that's okay; this is why we're here now!"

"Right, right. So uh… Do I need to battle you?" you asked cautiously. The fire type's gesture wasn't a very clear one.

"Uh… sort of? I'm not allowed to touch you. The objective is to land a hit on me." told Barry, finally taking his hoodie off. "No pressure though, (Name). I'm not very fast, to be honest."

You took that reassurance message with a grain of salt; you've seen the Blaziken in action, and it certainly strained your eyes trying to catch up with him.

"Uhm, okay. I'll try my best."

Barry bowed, wishing you the best of luck, before he spoke: "I know you'll do fine. Whenever you're ready, (Name)."

You weren't too sure how or where to start. Hopefully, you could impress the Blaziken with your skills. You lunged forward, attempting to make some physical contact with Barry. However, you could only swat at the air, as Barry was then behind you.

"Wh-What?!" you yelped in disbelief, as you fell flat on the floor. "How? But that doesn't even make any sense at all!"

Barry looked left and right, before shrugging his shoulders. "Come on, (Name)! You can't give up now!"

Shaking your head, you propped yourself up again, before trying to land a hit on the quick Blaziken. Once again, the fire type moved to a position away from your attack, leaving you to awkwardly stumble to where Barry previously was. You pouted, realising that this was about to be ten times harder than you had first imagined.

* * *

Up in the hall of origins, Giratina sat on their beanbag, making full use of the internet connection from… Somewhere. Of course, it was being used to spectate a minor training spar between a Blaziken and a (Species). Arceus peered through the door, seeing the ghostly dragon relax while on the job.

"Giratina! What are you doing!?" shouted the divine llama. Because, you know, that's basically what it is. "I've given you my role for a particular reason, you know!"

Giratina only waved a yellow claw at Arceus, much to the normal type's frustration. "Uh, ya dude, ya. I've got it all under control, ya? Like, trust me ya?"

Albeit skeptical, Arceus shook his head, intending to leave Giratina alone. "Don't screw anything up. I'm gonna go for a manicu- Uh, a council meeting, so I entrust you with my responsibilities."

"Ya dude, you're golden. You can trust me." replied Giratina, waiting until Arceus had left the room. "Now, this is getting silly. I wanna see this (Name) dude kick some ass."

* * *

It was about five minutes of futile attacks courtesy of yourself, before you noticed that the sky began to grow a little dark. Raindrops slowly began to fall as you found yourself getting faster with your attacks. You could hear the Blaziken pant more and more as he tried to avoid your lightening-fast offences. Meanwhile, you had no clue what was going on. You could only feel your stamina getting deplete more and more.

Suddenly, you thrust your head forward, and you hit something quite tough, similar to what you felt earlier this morning when you were rushing to school.

"OW!" helplessly yelped Barry, as you hit him in the stomach with forces you had no idea you had within you.

The Blaziken tumbled off the mat, face first in the wet grass. He groaned, clutching his abdomens and turning over onto his back, while you rushed over to his aid.

"Barry! Are you alright, Barry?" you squealed, worried about the Blaziken. Well, of course he wasn't alright, but you know. That's just the conventional question. "I really didn't mean to!"

Barry shook his head, looking rejuvenated already. "No worries, (Name)! I was just sort of winded, that's all. You really landed a _critical hit_ back there. Where did you learn to battle like that?"

First of all, you were surprised that the Blaziken immediately regained his will so quickly. You heard him scream as if he were in the iron Bouffalant. Secondly, you had no idea where all that came from. It was so unbelievable, that you even struggled to make a lie about it.

"I, uhh… Adrenaline?" you mustered. Thankfully, Barry nodded, understanding completely.

"Oh, right. That hormone can certainly do things to you." said Barry, resting on his elbows. "Now, uh… Do you mind?"

Barry made reference to the very intimate position you two were positioned in. A blush formed on both of your faces as you found that you were perched on his firm abdominals. Immediately, you took yourself off him, and tried to act as normal as possible, as if none of that had even happened.

"Thanks." said Barry, getting up on his own two talons. "I do think we should head back to the gymnasium, now. Battler or not, we don't want to get a sickness in the rain."

You smiled, as you followed the Blaziken back to the main gym. You found it slightly adorable, how Barry shook himself dry when you both got inside. Anyway, Barry told you to standby for a good bit, while he went to go and talk with Ms. Easel. After scanning the room, you spotted Lola on the bleachers, performing some basic stretches. You hadn't seen her all day, so it be worthwhile trying to make conversation with her.

"Hi, Lola!" you exclaimed, taking a seat beside the Lopunny. As you came closer to her, though, you could tell by the look on her face, that she was in some serious discomfort. "Is something wrong?"

Lola put a straight leg forward, intending to stretch her hamstring. "Oh, hiya (Name). Mmm, yeah. I must've done a bit too much exercise; I got a cramp in my leg."

A shaking shiver shredded down your spine; you've had fond memories of cramps in various places all over your body. "Oh, that must suck. I hate muscle cramps."

"You're telling me. Hey (Name), can you do me a solid real quick?" questioned Lola, staring at you with her chestnut irises. "I'm gonna lay back on the bench. Just push my leg up in the air for a bit so a can stretch out this damn cramp, m'kay?"

"Uhm, uhm, okay?" you nervously answered. You weren't sure if you were the best person to ask, or if this was the best place to do it.

Nonetheless, Lola did as she had promised, lying on her back and raising her leg straight up in the air, perpendicular to the bench. "Alright," commenced the Lopunny. "Just push my leg forward."

Cautiously, you applied a bit of force to the Lopunny's leg, decreasing the angle subtended between her upper thigh and her abdomen.

"Ohhh… Ughhh, that's the spot, (Name). Just keep pushing, you're doing great." moaned Lola. Thankfully, from this perspective, she couldn't catch a view of your incredibly red face. On the other hand, you could catch a perfect view of her toned hamstrings, calves and glutes. They created an outline through her fur, that told you that her muscles weren't too big, nor were they too small. They were just the supple size for a Lopunny such a herself.

"Hey, uh… (Name)? Hello? Are you gonna push?" said Lola, reminding you of your duty. For now, you forced yourself to keep your eyes fixated… anywhere but where the normal type's emphasised curves laid.

"Of course, right!" you replied, getting a grip on her firm calf, and pushing Lola's leg toward her torso.

"Uggghhh, that's the spot, (Name). Just keep going, m'kay?" Lola moaned, her feet curling in completeness. "My thighs feel like jelly when you do that, it's amazing."

You never knew the limits to Lola's flexibility - her toes were nearly touching her forehead. You were worried that you were about to crush her, and would've stopped if the Lopunny would let you. However, you did get a good view of her backside from here, sending your hormones into a spiralling frenzy.

"Ah-AH, there it is... Ugh, that felt magical, (Name). I reckon I'd be good from now on. Thanks for the help and all." Lola chirped, looking satisfied as you let her leg go. She stood up, seeming active and alive as she bounced up and down. "Damn, (Name). It's as if you're a pro at that. Just between you and me, how well do you think you can massage someone?"

This was a real head scratcher; you had no idea how things evolved into how they are now, and you weren't exactly sure how to feel about it either. "Uhm, I guess I can massage decently?"

Lola smirked and nodded. "Right, and you're coming along to my house later today, right?"

You began to get a little wary of the Lopunny's intentions. "Uhh… Yes, I am? Why?"

Lola simply dismissed your question by shrugging her shoulders. "Oh, oh, no reason. The more the merrier, though, am I right?"

You could only push the thought into the back of your mind, and dip your head. It's not like Lola actually saw you in _that_ kind of light. Well, that's only what you thought.

Giving you a friendly smile, Lola waved you a farewell and traversed over to the pull up bars. Barry still seemed to be talking to Ms. Easel - probably about your performance - so talking to him was a no-go. Raidon was exercising, and it would be better if you didn't interfere. However, at the back of the gym, you spotted two familiar figures: Anais and Nester. They seemed to be bickering about something, as you could tell by their body languages. At this distance, you couldn't hear what the argument was about.

Moments later, Anais stuck her nose up in the air, and stomped away from the Ninetales. You still had yet to uncover that mystery fire-type's character. Anyways, you found that Anais was actually strutting over to you by the bleachers. She angrily threw herself next to you, on the benches.

"UGH! Can you believe that douchebag?" Anais cried, her high pitched exclamation making you cringe. "Everytime we go off to make plans, he's always Sneasel-ing his way out of it!"

You most likely already knew the answer, but it was just so you could be sure: "Anais, you mean Nester Queuenuffs…? Queuenuenue? Uhhh… The Ninetales over there?"

Anais smiled, but she didn't look like she was in the mood to let out a chuckle. "Yeah, him. That pretty-boy thinks he can have anyone in the whole school! Only problem is, everyone swoons over him as well! He only wants a relationship for the sex."

You had a hard time listening while also concentrating on the Ninetales' looks from afar. Anais definitely was right. This dude was crazy handsome.

"Uh, you think so?"

"Duh, (Name). The whole world wants him down their pants only for his good looks, money, and well… The red rocket he's runnin' down South…" explained Anais. It was certainly going to take you a while to adjust to her idiolect.

"O-OH! I understand…" you muttered, a bright blush slapping your cheeks. "Although, it's better that you don't, you know… Fall victim to his… rocket?"

This time, Anais actually let out an audible chuckle. "Haha! Okay (Name), you're actually pretty funny. You know, supposedly, he's already bedded 47 different chicks! Half of them don't even go to this school. No way in the Distortion World am I gonna be number 48. I think I'd be better off going out with someone who actually cares about me, you know? Someone who doesn't just see me as some dumb sex statistic."

"Right, right." you said, making brief eye contact with the Sylveon. "Do you have anyone in mind?"

In the corner of your, you saw that Anais stared at you with her glowing light blue spheres. You didn't let her know that you had noticed, until you turned around. It was then, that she immediately found interest in looking outside the window.

"N-Not really, no…" Anais mumbled, looking a little redder than usual. "Do you?"

This one took a bit of thought and hesitation, before you went with the most safe answer.

"I'm still new here; I haven't quite met anyone that I really like, you know? At least, not yet, you know?"

"Oh. Well, I know you'll find the one. Who knows? They could be right under your nose!" Anais joked, giving you a toothy smile and a wag of her eyebrows.

"Haha! Yeah…"

 _ **Oh dear, I'm getting flashbacks back to sixteen years ago.**_

There was a bit of silence between you and Anais. Before it became awkward, you decided to ask the Sylveon a quick question.

"Uhm, Anais? You know Barry, your cousin, right?" you began, to which Anais nodded. "What do you think of him?"

Anais smiled, which brought upon a smile on your face as well. "Well, don't tell him any of this, because there's a reason why I treat him harshly; I really look up to him, even getting a little envious at times. He's kind, smart, athletic, rich and… peng. I just think that Barry's life is perfect, you know? But, he's so… vacuous, you know? He doesn't realise the benefits of living a life that he has. I'd never want him to take any of it for granted, so I suppose I'm a bit of an asshole towards him."

"Oh, that makes a lot of sense, though. You're a really great cousin to be looking out for him like that." you replied, rubbing your chin a little. "Barry is extremely kind, so I wouldn't want the world's materialistic values to spoil him either."

"Exactly that, (Name)! No one else, besides us of course, seems to realise it, so I take it into my own hands… er, paws, to ensure that he remains this way." boldly claimed Anais, seething with adrenaline.

"Well, I'd say, you're a really good cousin towards Barry. You know, being there to back him up and stuff" you reinstated, watching the Sylveon as she slightly moved closer to you on the bench.

Anais tilted her head at an angle and grinned. "Thanks, (Name). But, sometimes, he can be a little bit.. Ugh, you know?"

"What do you mean?" You asked, not getting what Anais was saying.

"He's just really polite all the time, right? Sometimes, it just really makes me gag. How can someone be so sweet and keep a straight face?" Anais complained, making you chuckle a little.

"Aha, well that's understandable. But, better to be polite than outright rude all the time, huh?"

Anais shrugged at your point, before looking at your left. "Well, speak of the Giratina…"

You shifted your vision to the left as well. Barry was making his way over with his usual smile on his beak. You had the chance to look the Blaziken up and down, just now noticing his turquoise-colored hoodie that covered his torso.

"Hi, (Name)! Oh, and hello Anais." Barry greeted. However, you did notice that his tone became slightly sullen when he mentioned his cousin's name. "I've got some really good news for you also, (Name)."

You wagged your head up and down, as if to gesture for the Blaziken to keep going. "What's that?"

"Well, I was chatting with Ms. Easel about your performance earlier to make the battling team. She watched over the footage of you going at it, and she said that there was no doubt that you're a natural battler!" praised Barry, pulling out a turquoise vest from behind his back. "Welcome to the team, (Name)!"

Barry held out the vest at two corners, so as it unraveled from it's folded position, you could see "(Name) (Surname)" printed on the back in a dew yellow color.

"Wow! I never knew that I'd actually make it!" you cried, hopping off the bench and clutching the vest tightly. "Thank you so much, Barry! But, uhm… What did you mean by footage of us battling? We were out in the open?"

Chuckling, Barry reached inside of his hoodie, fumbling for a bit before pulling out a small device from… wherever he kept it. It was definitely beyond you, that's for sure.

"I had this little _GoProbopass_ concealed by my feathers while we battled. To be honest, Ms. Easel was gobsmacked, and so was I!" laughed Barry, putting the camera back where he found it. Now things began to make sense.

"Wait, so (Name) is gonna be battling with us? Barry, this team is gonna be crazy strong." Anais inputted, playfully giving you a light punch on your back. "I can tell that (Name) is a beast without even needing to see 'em battle!"

"Aha, thank you, Anais." you murmured. Your ego was being fed a lot of compliments, but you were a little anxious whether you'd be able to recreate what you did earlier against Barry.

"Of course. But, remember: Na batalha, estamos o campeões! We'll let our skills do the talking on the mat." suggested Barry, which sounded like music to your ears.

As soon as you put on your vest, with pride of course, the bell rung, and you and your peers were dismissed. You then followed Anais and Barry to the cafeteria, where you could grab something to eat. All of that hardcore training really boosted your appetite.

Once again, you saw that Barry had bagged a table without exactly getting anything to eat, so you decided to grab him some food nonetheless. You felt that being good friends with people you've been with would prove to be beneficial in the long run. Plus, they seemed like extremely nice people.

For no particular reason, while you and Anais queued up in the lunch line, you kept finding yourself glancing back at the Blaziken on his lonesome. Well, that wasn't for much longer, as a Ninetales joined Barry at the table.

"Uh… Anais? Don't look now, but that Nester guy…" you whispered, tapping the Sylveon to get her attention.

Indeed you did, as Anais' eyebrows furrowed instantly upon getting a visual on the Ninetales. Something told you that perhaps notifying Anais was not the best of ideas.

"What the…? Can that dude just piss off already? Why does he need to be hanging around our table?" spoke Anais through gritted teeth. She looked more hostile than a rabid Mightyena off it's leash.

"I get you, Anais. Maybe you could just ask him to leave?" you advised, watching Anais grab her food. "There's no point letting him get you all stressed."

Anais looked like she was about to explode, even making the Voltorb behind you sweat a little. "I know, (Name), I know. But, if you could imagine how many times I've been stood up by him, you wouldn't want to talk to him either."

You huffed, but nodded anyways. You could only wait and see how it will soon unfold. Once you grabbed your crêpes along with some Leppa berry juice and extra salad for Barry, you trekked back to the table that had Nester, sitting menacingly comfortably. From what you could remember, Barry and Nester were good friends, so it was no wonder why Nester would be coming to talk with him.

You sat down next to Barry, and across from Nester. Unfortunately, this meant that Anais had to sit on the same side as Nester. Thankfully, she did so without a fuss, but you saw the massive gap between the two to be a tad bit ridiculous.

Nester looked at you, next Anais, then back to you. He gave you a very toothy smirk, before opening his mouth. "Hey, (Name). What's up?"

His low and gruff, yet seductive voice sent shivers down your spine, and all over your body. You couldn't even find the will to pick up your crêpe anymore.

"I, uh… Uh… I'm f-fine, thank you."

 _(Name)! Get a hold of yourself! It's only one guy, and he's got you losing your cool!_

 _ **Well to be fair, I'd definitely be a trembling mess in front of him too. Don't feel bad. Oh, also, I've heard that he's like, at least 9 inches. Now, let's not even get started on his girt-**_

 _NOT HELPING!_

Nester rested an elbow on the table, giving Anais a cold shoulder, and seeming to give you most of his attention. Half of you wanted this, but the other half was screaming for you to tell him to get the heck out of here for the sake of Anais.

"That's real good to hear, (Name)." the Ninetales spoke, flicking his brows up and down to get you red in your cheeks. Unfortunately, for a peach like yourself, it did work. "Although I can't stop staring at your amazing eyes, I've noticed that you're a bit red there… Are you hot at all?"

"N-N-No, I'm juh-just fine, thank you." you mustered, now putting a shaky hand on your crêpe.

This was when you saw Anais slam her paws on the table. "Okay Nester, are you fucking me right now? Are you seriously trying to flirt with (Name)? How about you do us all a favour and leave?! There's no way that (Name) would even think about going out with you."

Nester put up his paws in his defence. "Anais, I have no idea what you're talking about. Just calm down."

"Calm down?!" screamed Anais, hitting the table so hard that your drink nearly spilled over. "Are you actually _broken_? How can you say that, when you try to fuck everyone you meet!?"

This is where the Blaziken next to you had to intervene, because things were getting a bit too intense for anyone's liking, especially your own. Anais' derogatory and colorful language was unlike anything you've ever heard before.

"Anais, Anais! Please, calm down!" yelped Barry. However, by the way Anais glared at Nester, you could see that Barry's pleas came in one ear and went out the other.

"Then what, Nester? You treat them as an actual person? Of course not! You go and dump 'em in your trashcan of people who've been your personal cock-sleeve!" yelled Anais, who was getting increasingly louder and louder as her rage built on. "And to think, you tried to do that with me! You're sick! Sick in the your head!"

Other people began to look over at your table, giving you and your posse unwanted attention. Nester looked as calm as ever, amid all of this drama, still with his paws up.

"Listen, Anais. You're just overreacting. I think you should take some time to chill out." cooly spoke the Ninetales, waving his bangs out of the way of his line of sight.

From what you saw, something like snapped within Anais' mental state, as she just stopped talking all of a sudden. She became a statue with eyes that pierced the Ninetales' skin. On your inside, you were afraid to what the Sylveon was about to do next.

Immediately, Barry stood up and dived over the table, tackling a resistant Anais to the ground.

"BARRÁGAN BURSYAMO! GET OFF ME, OR I SWEAR...!" bellowed Anais, who was being forcefully restrained by the Blaziken. You saw Barry, in the middle of the scuffle, crane his neck to Nester.

"Nester, leave! Go!" shouted the Blaziken, who then resumed holding down the Sylveon.

Meanwhile, Nester shrugged, and pulled his gaze back to your own two eyes. You could feel yourself melting in place. "Oh well. I'll be seeing you very soon, (Name)."

Nester stepped off the bench, walking past you to exit the cafeteria. However, you felt 5 tails caress your backside as he walked past you, inducing a unintentional moan out of you. You could've sworn you heard the Ninetales chuckle after that. You couldn't help but blush out of embarrassment at what had just happened.

When Nester left the cafeteria, you regained your bearings, and switched your attention to the brawling cousins across from you. You got up and strutted over to Anais and Barry, the former showing less will to oppose Barry's forces.

"Anais, I know you're angry, but please listen to me." you said in a soft tone, attempting to calm the raging Sylveon verbally. "He's gone now, and he's not going to hurt you, or anyone else anymore. There's no point being so aggravated anymore."

Finally, Anais stopped moving, sighing in defeat.

"Alright, alright. I overreacted, I'm sorry." huffed Anais. "I was about to kill him, though. You should've let me, Barry, ya buzzkill. Also, stop straddling me, it's weird."

Barry nervously snickered, getting up and helping the Sylveon back on her four paws. You were now under the impression that Anais was back to normal. It was a good thing that you were friends with her.

"Sorry, Anais. But, I don't want anyone getting hurt, whether that be you, Nester, (Name), or anyone else. Please try and avoid Nester from now on, okay?"

You got a warm feeling in your heart as Barry conversed with his cousin; it was the perfect example of a brother-sister relationship, which was absolutely adorable in your eyes. For only a moment, you wondered how well the Blaziken could handle children. Then again, how well could Anais handle a child? So many questions, so little time.

"Yeah, yeah, okay Barry." nonchalantly replied Anais. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom, guys. If I don't catch you before school ends, I'll see you outside the gates for our meet-up, m'kay?"

Both you and Barry nodded in unison, before bidding the Sylveon a brief farewell. Barry then counted two digits on his talons, before turning to you.

"Well (Name), it's only a matter of approximately two minutes before Anais actually finds Nester to beat up on him again. Because, you know, she's not going to the bathroom." explained Barry. You did find it cute how despite what Anais told you earlier today, it was as if Barry was really the one looking out for her. "Sorry, but I'll have to meet up with you later, (Name). By the way, sorry about Anais' and her temper. She's very… passionate."

You laughed heartily, before shaking you head. "Don't worry, Barry, I understand perfectly. I'll see you soon."

Barry left the cafeteria, leaving you on your own.

 _ **Well? Those crêpes aren't going to eat themselves.**_

* * *

Yeah, the upload times are potato, aren't they? Sorry about that. Anyway, thanks for reading this chapter. Feel free to leave a review; I'd love to know what you thought of this chapter. Constructive criticism is always appreciated!

Aha! You thought I forgot? Credz! Credz! Credz to DegenerateFluffington for beta-reading this one. Go check out his stories, if you please!

-Luanastar


	4. Chapter 4

" **...fanfiction is literature!"**

M'kay, time for the fourth chapter. A bit late, so I very much do apologise. Thanks for reading the third, I did enjoy the reviews that came in. Be aware, though, these reviews are the only way that I know if there's something that you'd like to be changed. Furthermore, as we go down the line, decisions will have to be made by you folk. So, do be prepared!

Luanastar doesn't own anything.

* * *

It was about time that you were dismissed from lessons. Mathematics was never a fun subject for you. That wasn't to say that you were bad at it, but there were definitely more interesting things in life. Regardless, you tugged at the turquoise vest you donned that Barry had given to you in the morning. The veneration imbued in the one piece of clothing was enough to get you stares of awe from the other students. You could do with this sort of attention for a while.

Stepping outside, you looked left and right, searching for your friends so you could begin the motive. You spotted Raidon on his own, peacefully leaning against the wall. You trotted up to him, but he didn't seem to look up. You smiled, and playfully nudged his arm.

"Wuh, wuh?!" sputtered the Luxray, slightly losing his balance. You did have to laugh at that one.

"Haha! What's up, Raidon?" you greeted, once Raidon had found his balance. "Are you ready to get going for ice cream?"

Raidon bounced up and down, ecstatically. "Deffo! I'm really stoked that Anais asked me too, since… Ah, nevermind. I'm really happy to be here, though."

The Luxray's change in wordplay really piqued your interest, though. Sure, you were only friends recently, but you still wanted to know.

"Hey, hey? What do you mean by 'nevermind', Raidon? You aren't keeping any secrets, are you?" you questioned, cocking your head a little.

Frantically, Raidon shook his head from side to side. "No, never, (Name)! It just wasn't important, that's all."

You decided to leave that alone for now, but it still did pick at your curiosity. It didn't take too long, before there was a new addition to your party: Anais Breon-Solian came around the corner, grinning and trotting over to you and Raidon without a care in the world.

"Heya, guys!" she cheerily yipped. "You guys ready for some ice-cream and chill?"

 _ **Oh, really? Well, just wait for me to get my lubricants, and I'll get to watching you guys!**_

 _What? What are you talking about?_

 ** _...This thing is still on? I uh, was talking on a different line..._**

 _...Okay._

Now that Anais had put it like that, you thought of all the weird, and possibly sexual, connotations that could follow the course of today. However, your group of friends weren't like that. But, if they were, would you truly mind?

"Y-Yeah, I've been thinkin' about it for the whole school day!" told Raidon. He certainly looked like he had been. Although, you don't remember him having that blush on his cheeks.

Anais leaned next to Raidon, on the wall. "That's dece. I'm stoked that you two could make it; hangin' around Lola and Barry is fun and all, but I think you two tagging along will spice things up." stated Anais, seemingly supremely stoked. "Uh, speaking of which, has anyone seen Barry or Lola?"

Both you and Raidon shook your heads, but solely you had replied. "Sorry Anais, but I haven't seen either of them since the morning during gym class."

Huffing, Anais sagged her head toward the pavement, schooching a tad bit closer to Raidon. "That's potato. I doubt that they'd be coming anytime soon; Lola's probably too busy trying to be fashionably late, and Barry would be doing some nerdy deed like the goody-two-talons he is."

Now, you had let out a hearty laugh. The banter between Anais and her cousin was definitely something like no other. Imagine, it was this same Sylveon who was trying to tear the poor Nester's throat out earlier today. Thankfully, by being her friend, you could certainly steer clear of her bad side.

Finally, from around the corner appeared Lola and Barry in tandem. The addition of two completed your party of five, meaning that you were all able to progress with the day.

"Hey guys, sorry we were late." said Lola, stretching out her arms. "Forgot my purse in the gym, and Barry helped my find it. Can we get going now?"

You had the urge to roll your eyes here as if Lola hadn't taken up at least 20 minutes of doing nothing due to her clumsiness. However, Anais seemed to be one step ahead of you.

"Ugh, you're telling me. We've been waiting here for ages, and my legs are killing me, Lola." whined the Sylveon, shaking her head as she gave away glances, especially toward you.

"So what?" answered back Lola, stuffing her purse inside her… Well, you must've blinked at a particularly inconvenient time, because you never saw where she put it. "We're gonna grab some ice cream, then bounce to my place. You can rest or sleep on the couch or whatever."

Albeit an iteration of the original plan, this sounded like music to your ears. On the other hand, via the way she groaned, this sounded like a fork scratching a plate to Anais.

"Can we just go straight there? Like, let's just scratch the ice cream." advised Anais. This did not receive positive feedback from the likes of Barry and Lola.

"What? You can't white out of the plan, Anais. Plus, it's the right time and weather for some ice cream, too." argued Barry. However, this only brought out an intervention from Raidon.

"Well, Anais does have a point - by the time we get to the ice cream parlour and back to Lola's house, it'll be late, and we'd be tired too."

Finally, Lola cut off any more butting of heads by coughing loudly. "Okay, okay. (Name), since you haven't had a say yet, what do you reckon we should do?"

 _ **Wow, it's about time you were allowed to give your input, am I right?**_

Although, you couldn't really formulate an executive decision, since there was just too much at stake… Or so you thought; "I mean… I guess I don't really mind with whatever we do, as long as we do it, right?"

Thanks to your (barely) tactful reasoning, collectively concurring grunts and other sounds resonated within your group, before Lola came to a compromise.

"Alright, guys. We'll head straight to my place. We could probably order pizza and stuff. By the way, do any of you guys drink?" asked Lola. You certainly spotted her eyes gleam for a brief second. "Haha! I'm kidding. Let's get going."

 _ **You know, she wasn't kidding.**_

 _Yes, I do understand that, conscience._

 _ **...So, are you gonna get your drink game on or not?**_

 _Of course not! I can't return home smelling of alcohol while head-over-heels drunk! You must be crazy!"_

 _ **...Haha! I'm kidding. Get going already, but don't destroy your liver.**_

…

To no surprise, Lola's house was only a short walk away from the school. She had let you and your posse in with a set of house keys, and you were greeted with a beautifully clean interior. The walls were a lovely white, and upon entering the lounge, the room's slightly worn sofas and humid temperature screamed complete cosiness.

"This is an amazing house you've got here, Lola." you complimented, briskly taking a seat beside Raidon on the end of the sofa. "I especially adore the pictures you've got up there on the wall."

You pointed up to the Eastern wall, where it adorned the image of two Lopunny's. You thought they were nearly identical, if their height difference was to be negligible.

Lola giggled a bit. "O-Oh! That's my sister, Layla, and I. She's older by about… 2 or 3 years? I don't remember. Anyway, she's at work until tomorrow afternoon, and my parents are out of town, so we've deffo got this place to ourselves."

Anais and Raidon cheered a little, as they both reclined on the adjacent couch. Lola switched on the tv, before walking towards the doorway and beckoning you.

"Hey (Name), can you help me carry some snacks from the kitchen?" requested the Lopunny. Of course, you being you, you nodded and pranced over to the medium sized kitchen behind Lola.

The both of you stood outside the pantry room. Lola stepped inside, handing you snacks to put on the counter like an assembly line. She gave you a few more morsels, before giving you a brief wink. "(Name), step inside for a sec; I need your help."

"Uh, okay? What's up?"

Lola gestured for you to look up, and the both of you saw many glass bottles of Giratina's finest nectar neatly aligned in a row: _Super Bonsly, Gigalith Ale_ , _Jack Deino's_ , you name it. Although, from what you understood, this idea didn't seem like the best idea to do.

"Woah, Lola! I thought you said that you were joking about drinking alcohol back at school!" you cried, albeit a little quietly so you wouldn't be heard by the others in the lounge. "Please tell me this is still a joke."

Instead of taking your pleads seriously, the Lopunny chuckled without a care in the world. "Come on, (Name). I know you aren't a pansy; not anyone would help me stretch like you did earlier today, now would they? So, give me a leg up, and I'll get the goods."

You were infinitely caught off guard by the normal type's remark. You didn't really have any other choice than to simply give her what she wanted. Thus, you stood in a position where she could easily climb up on your slightly shaky body.

"Alright, thanks (Name). Now, let's get to work…" mumbled Lola, grabbing as many bottles as she could carry within her thin, frail but overall strong arms. Soon, she got off your back, and you could only stand there with your mouth wide open - Lola carried at least 15 bottles of different kinds, as if she had more than just 2 arms on her.

"Careful, (Name), you don't any Dustox' flying in there!" sang Lola, happily skipping out of the pantry room. What an event this was going to be.

Sighing, you left to go back to the lounge carrying the snacks, and saw the look on everyone's faces: Lola was as happy as she was in the kitchen. No surprise there. Raidon had a medium-sized, crooked smile, but couldn't seem to stop his ears from twitching. Barry looked absolutely white around the face, save for the blush that intensified on his cheeks. Finally, Anais wore a loud grin that served as an omen for her actions to come. You seemed like the only one of the bunch that still had their screwed on the right way was you.

"Alright, guys! Let's get serious." commanded Lola, excitedly popping open a bottle of _Super Bonsly_ , with her bare paws, mind you, and chugging it straight down the hatch.

It was at this moment that Barry turned to you with worry sprayed over his brilliant violet eyes.

"Uhm, I uh, have never really drank any sort of alcohol before, and I don't think I will. The smell is just overwhelming. Are you going to have a taste, (Name)?" politely asked the Blaziken.

You had a good look at the set of drinks set out on the table, before shaking your head. "I don't think so, it just never really appealed to me."

 _ **Well, that's open to change. Just look at how it's worked out for me!**_

 _I don't even know how that works._

 _ **Exactly!**_

Barry gave you a sweet, caring smile. "Right! That sounds like a good decision. Although, I'm sure having a few snacks wouldn't hurt, right?" he said, leaning over to take a few _Kit-Delkatty_ from the table. "You know, rather than what these guys are doing."

You shifted your gaze over to Raidon and Anais, who were taking turns drinking out of smaller glasses of different alcohols of different varieties. Although, the Luxray seemed to be more than just uneasy. In your eyes, he seemed to be a bit of an amateur in comparison to Anais, and especially relative to Lola, who casually downed drinks as if it was water.

Speaking of which, Lola put down her sixth bottle on the table, before her eyes suddenly lit up. "Oy! Do you guys wanna play quarters?"

You weren't exactly sure what that game was. By the looks on your peers' faces, they probably weren't sure either.

"What's quarters?" asked Anais, seemingly more than just a little tipsy.

You saw Lola roll her eyes, pulling up a folding chair from behind the television. "Alright, rookies. So what happens, is that we all take turns trying to bounce a Poké-penny into a shot glass. If you flop, then you gotta take a good shot yourself, of this here _Jack Deino's_. If you get it in, then you don't. Entendu?"

Nods came from the four of you that listened. Although, Barry still had an inquiry, by the way he gave you a confused glare.

"Uhm, (Name)? What's a shot glass?"

You chuckled, and used this as an excuse to snake an arm onto Barry's shoulder in a consoling fashion. "All in due time, Barrágan, all in due time."

Barry smiled and wagged his head, now immersing himself in the game that took place in the table around them. You focused too, as Lola was the first to take her turn. She bounced her quarter off the table, but unfortunately, it didn't land in the cup. So, Lola drank a shot of alcohol, as foretold. It didn't look that it would actually do anything for her, though.

"M'kay (Name), your turn."

You were given a quarter-dollar, courtesy of Lola, to use for the game. Despite your novice skills, you threw the penny to the best of your abilities. To say the least, you could've done a bit better.

 _ **Maybe next time, you could actually try to get it on the table.**_

 _How about you buzz off?_

Although preceded by a snicker from Lola's side, she acknowledged that it was your first time playing, and slid a quarter to Barry. "Alright (Name), take a shot."

Reluctantly, you adopted the shot glass into your hand, staring at the brownish-orange liquid distastefully. You can't exactly say that you were too hot on drinking on your first day out with friends, but… One shot won't kill you.

"(Name)? Today would be nice." deadpanned Anais, who made Lola and Raidon laugh immediately.

"Right, of course, haha." you nervously replied, putting the glass closer and closer to your mouth, tipping the cup's contents down your throat. It had a sorts of burning sensation on your tongue - it tasted like you were drinking sewage, making you cringe in ways you never imagined until now.

Meanwhile, roars of laughter emerged from all your buddies, most likely yapping it up at the look on your face upon tasting the strong alcohol. Well, it was understandable, you supposed, since that was your first time after all. Anyway, Barry got himself ready to continue the game.

He chucked the penny out of his talons, bouncing off the surface of the table and hitting the side of the cup. Close, but no go.

"Aww, no dice." sighed Barry, but smiling due to his good sportsmanship… if this can be considered a sport. "So, do I drink now?"

"Yup yup." stated Lola, the host, pouring a strong cup of _Jack Deino's_ for the young Blaziken. Something told you that this spelled out trouble, with a capital 'T'. "Remember - you gotta down the whole thing, m'kay?"

"Right!" exclaimed Barry, looking as determined as ever… Well, until he actually drank the shot. It was then where you saw the will to live drain from his eyes. Thankfully, he swallowed instead of spitting it out, which somewhat put you at ease for some reason. "That's… That's gross…" muttered the Blaziken.

Lola, the hostess that gained amusement from your misfortunes, gave a penny next to Raidon. "M'kay Rai, you just gotta land it in the glass."

You saw Raidon gain a little blush when Lola uttered his nickname. You thought out in your head how those two would do as a couple… Well, not as good as other possible relationships you had thought out. Five of them included yourself, but maybe you better hustle and focus on the game at hand.

With a flick of his wrist, you were definitely surprised to see Raidon nail the shot with surreal grace. His penny spun inside the shot glass, making him beam with vigor. No words came from him, though.

"Wow, to be honest, I didn't think you'd make that." Lola admitted, handing a penny to Anais to get her groove on. "No shot for you, Rai… At least for now. Anyways, take a swing, Ann."

It was around here where you wondered where Lola was popping these pennies from. Nonetheless. Anais missed her target narrowly, making her mouth a curse word, as you could see with your sharp vision. However, she shrugged and took a swig of her poison, and from her face, you could tell she wasn't fazed at all.

"Oh well. I better start gettin' used to this." snidely spoke Anais, reclining in the sofa as the game progressed.

* * *

Ten… fifteen? Maybe twenty minutes later, you found yourself dazed, daft, and definitely drunk. You had no idea what was going on, as everything felt and looked so fuzzy. However, you saw the fate of each one of your friends back to back: Anais shared a similar state to you, while Raidon was slumped in his chair, close to incapacitation by the alcohol. Barry was on the floor, no need to explain. However, you were more than just amazed at Lola; the Lopunny sat cross-legged on her grey folding chair, reading a small book while she waited for her turn. She defined the term, _Handling your Lugia._

"M'kay guys, maybe we should stop for now. Ya'll don't look too good." you heard Lola state, packing up the alcohol and shot glasses. "If I'm honest, none of you guys look okay to make your way home, so you can stay the night if you want."

Sleep right now sounded like music to your ears. It would only take a phone call home, first.

"W-Wut? Sleep? Naw, Lollipop, I-I'm good. I'll grab Barry right now, and… Barry? BARRY!" half-heartedly shouted Anais. From your perspective, the Sylveon looked like she was about to topple off the couch. "Oy, wake up, dude!"

Raidon, who was in a worse condition, spoke up. "Is he ***HIC*** dead? That's not supposed to hap- ***HIC*** -pen, r-right?"

"I don't know… (Name), can you check if this dude is alive? I uhh… I just want to make sure he isn't dead so I can sleep in peeeeeeeace." incoherently mumbled Anais, trying to swat her paw to get your attention. You heard her, above the incessant ringing noise that was also between your ears.

"Right, right…" you slowly replied, forcing your muscles into action as you intrepidly made your way off the couch, sliding onto the floor swiftly. Well, not quite, but you get my drift. You put your ear on the Blaziken's chest, hearing his heart thump between large intervals. "Y-Yeah, he's f-f-f-f-fine, Anais…"

"Great… I'm gonna… nighty-night…" and that was the last thing you heard Anais say, before she seemed to immediately switch off.

You also followed suit. There was a tough force on your noggin', before you also went down unconscious road. Legend has it, that's a damn long road, too.

* * *

 _A bright light woke you from your slumber. The floor you lay on was a deep crimson, and the rugged material brushed against your body softly. However, the real question, was why you were here in the first place, as you definitely had no recollection of this area._

" _Okay dude, what in the name of Arceus did you do to your body?_ " _came a booming voice from before you. However, it sounded so familiar - just like the voices within your head._

" _W-What? What's going on? Who are you?"_

 _The voice seemed to sigh, exasperatedly. "Look up, dude."_

 _You did as the voice demanded, and saw the creature that tormented your mental state for the past day. This creature, was one that you only heard of in books and urban myths. There wasn't a time where you ever thought you'd see it, but now, the image became imprinted in your brain._

" _N-No way… You're… Y-You're..!"_

" _Yes, dude." the same voice sighed again. "I'm the same prick that's been in your head. But, my friends call me Giratina. Although, I think my birth name is actu-"_

" _NO WAY! YOU'RE GIRATINA!" you shouted at the top of your lungs, unsure whether to feel happy or wary. One thing was for sure, though; you were definitely surprised._

" _Alright, dude! I get it! Watch the sensitive ears, yo." aggravatedly responded Giratina, rubbing their non-existent ears._

 _You breathed in and out, just to get back your cool. "Right, right… sorry. I'm just really… overwhelmed! What do you want from me?"_

 _Giratina stretched out, yawning right in front of you as if they were at home. "Yeah, whatever. What you're experiencing right now is just a dream, so chill out. I just wanted to know why you jacked up your body so badly. I mean, you were slammed back there, dude."_

" _I mean, I didn't know what I'd be taking in was to be so heavy. I just want to fit in with my new friends and all, I suppose." you confessed, inducing a condescending eye-roll from Giratina. "H-Hey! Don't judge me! If it's been you who's been in my head this entire time, then why are you such a jerk?!"_

" _Pfft, I'm Giratina. I'm not supposed to be a goody-two-shoes, am I?" crudely stated the dragon. Unfortunately, to a certain degree, they were right._

" _Yeah, well… Whatever, just give me useful advice next time, at least!" you bargained, not expecting too much in your favour, of course. Do be advised, you're arguing with a being with an intelligence a thousand light-years ahead of your own._

" _Sure, sure. Fine then. Now, get ready, you're gonna wake up."_

" _Wait, what?"_

* * *

Slowly, your eyes fluttered open again, and you weren't in the same place as you were in your dreams. Instead, reality brought you under the covers of a bed, in a brown-coloured room. From the glass pane on the ceiling, you saw that it was a dark blue hue in the sky. Next to you, in the bed, was a Blaziken, breathing in and out rhythmically. His chiseled back brought a small blush to your face, before your conscience was overwhelmed by the uncomfortable feeling of lightheadedness. You did wonder why Barry was without his hoodie, but you did not dwell on it for too long.

You sat up in the bed, seeing a another bed parallel to yours, with Anais and Raidon in it. In the centre of these beds, was a lone Lopunny, sitting on that same folding chair, reading a book and drinking from a mug. Don't ask me what exactly she was drinking.

"About time you're awake, (Name)." spoke Lola, closing her book. "Is that hangover killing you yet?"

You put a hand to your head. A major pounding sensation knocked at your head like an impatient postman at a door. "Ugh, yeah. This sucks Sitrus berries. I have no idea how you're able to drink so much, but keep your cool so well."

Lola laughed out loud, but didn't seem to wake up the others. "Well, tons of experience, and a very influential family."

Your eyebrows twitched uncontrollably, but of course, what else would you be expecting?

 _ **You took the words right out of my mouth, my fellow author.**_

Right on, dragon-dude. Anyway, you sighed, as you laid back in the bed. Although, you couldn't help but notice how Lola fidgeted without pause within her seat. You heard it so often, that you struggled to go to sleep.

"Hey Lola, is something wrong?" you asked, sitting back up again. The Lopunny looked a little bit more exasperated than before, yet it had barely been two minutes. "You're like… moving around a lot."

Lola's hazel orbs touched upon your own. "Y-Yeah, I'm fine. But (Name), can you help me out with something real quick?"

Hesitantly, you nodded, since you did want to catch up on your rest.

"Thanks, just follow me, m'kay?"

You slowly got up out of the bed, so you would not wake up the sleeping Barry, and followed the Lopunny out of the room. She led you back downstairs to the white-themed lounge, and laid on the couch.

"Okay (Name), don't make this awkward or anything. Just come here, and I'll tell you what to do, m'kay?"

* * *

Oh my, I was more than just hot under the collar when I typed this! Do expect some adult themes in the future, too. Anyways, thank you for reading this chapter again. Do forgive me for the potato upload speeds. Unjustified, this one. Lest I forget, credz! Credz to my dude DegenerateFluffington for a lovely beta read. Thanks a bunch!

-Luanastar


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